


Dotted Moss

by naturallesbain



Series: Rewriting The Deaths [5]
Category: The Outsiders - S. E. Hinton
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Hurt/No Comfort, M/M, sorry - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-07
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-12 06:34:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29256027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/naturallesbain/pseuds/naturallesbain
Summary: Whenever you coughed, the sound rattled my bones, and it was as if I could see the inky tendrils of death curl around your body, taking everything you had to offer and so much more without choice.-Read, comment, kudo's, all are welcome! My outsiders account on tumblr is @naturallesbain, my account for the hunger games is @tothetributes, and for newsies is @newsieswheresthepapes
Relationships: Johnny Cade & Dallas Winston
Series: Rewriting The Deaths [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1961923
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10





	Dotted Moss

I didn't know I'd have to memorize the brown of his eyes or the scratch of his voice so soon. I didn't know I had to memorize the sculpt of his subtle muscles or light brown to black strands of hair falling over a too-white pillow in a hospital room. 

I didn't know you wouldn't live for longer. You gasped for breath against the pearl white hospital bed and choked on any air you could grasp because of how bad the smoke messed up your lungs.

Whenever you coughed, the sound rattled my bones, and it was as if I could see the inky tendrils of death curl around your body, taking everything you had to offer and so much more without choice. It slithered up your legs, your back, and wrapped around your neck like vines that grew in the forest, and burn scars dotted your back like moss on trees. 

I was there by your side when you died and when you whispered your last words through labored breaths that left even me feeling hopeless. 

It felt like my world was ripped from me. Your last breath tugged at me, keeping me on my toes as I thought back to your final moments, how you moved through life with as much grace as a willow tree and how I watched the heavens fall on your back, and you carry their weight throughout your life. 

I didn't know what to do afterward, but I remember feeling hopeless, yet I somehow knew that I would feel like this for the rest of my life. I knew that I'd spend the rest of my life regretting turning the car around and not getting to you in time. 

The funeral hurt most, and I nearly broke down like I did the night you died, but I had to stay. I sat silent the entire time, watching the preacher bless you and read lines off a paper of your life achievements, despite the list not being very long. 

We carried your casket to the burial site under a willow tree. The old bench there was covered with moss, and I remembered your burns. I remembered that you hated them mentioned, despite them being the elephant in the room. 

We lowered you down into the Earth, memories with you flashing through my head and the untold legacy that we'd all have to tell as you lay safely with the same moss and stone you loved in life. 


End file.
